No strange things are allowed to evolve!

"Mountain...god...?!"

A look of shock appeared in everyone's eyes.

Jiang Shu simply gave them food, yet they didn't suspect a thing.

This is actually quite normal. Given Jiang Shu's current status in their hearts, even if he said that he was their long-lost father, they would still go back and ask their mother with great anticipation.

It's just a mountain god; it's nothing unacceptable.

However, there are still some thoughtful people among these people.

Although not out of doubt, she still expressed her confusion and bewilderment to Jiang Shu: "But benefactor, if you are the mountain god, you should be able to easily make everyone rich in one go, so why do you need to open a workshop?"

The atmosphere fell silent for a moment, because this was the question most people wanted to ask.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu flew into a rage: "Foolish! I may be able to easily create wealth that you could never use up in your lifetime, but wealth is ultimately finite. You may not be able to use it all, but what about your next generation, and the generation after that?"

Only through your own efforts, by gaining valuable experience and knowledge in the process of accumulating wealth, and acquiring these treasures that can be passed down from generation to generation and will only become more perfect and mature rather than be worn away, can your happiness be passed on!

"Do you want to be old money, or do you want to be nouveau riche? The choice is yours!"

"oops!"

The person who was questioned immediately blushed, filled with shame and embarrassment.

"As expected of the Mountain God, his vision is far-sighted. We people are short-sighted."

“Old Qian, we want to be landlords with a fortune, not just nouveau riche who sit around and squander their wealth.”

"Yes, Mountain God, please teach us what to do!"

These people were originally workers for landlords and powerful figures. They knew the power of capital and understood that whoever controlled the means of production was the boss. After Jiang Shu's explanation, they immediately realized that having money alone was not enough. If they did not have the ability to protect their wealth, then it would all be a pipe dream.

Seeing this, Jiang Shu smiled with satisfaction: "Didn't I already say that I wanted to build a workshop here?"

"workshop..."

Everyone looked at each other.

a few days later.

The local gentry and wealthy people of Zhao Village all keenly noticed that something was amiss.

Not only are the lands they rented out no longer being cultivated, and the figures who used to be busy working in the fields all day long are no longer seen, but even the day laborers who used to do odd jobs at home have stopped coming to work year-round.

Strangely, these people did not stop going out to make a living in Zhao Village; they still went out early and returned late, but no one knew what they were doing.

What's going on?

"They're not going to live?"

Several local gentry members got together and discussed it, but the more they thought about it, the more uneasy they felt.

They summoned several middle-class foremen, and upon inquiring, they learned of the strange things that had recently happened.

"Reporting to you gentlemen, our farmhands have been on strike since the day before yesterday. They're not coming to work, and they're even refusing to pay last month's wages, saying they've found new jobs and are going to make big money."

"Make a lot of money?" The gentry were puzzled. "They can't read a single word, they don't know anything except farming and odd jobs, and they live in the village and never go out. They couldn't possibly be looking for work. How could they possibly make a lot of money?"

The foremen exchanged glances and smiled wryly: "We don't know either. We wanted to ask, but they all acted mysteriously and wouldn't let us ask. They just said it was a respectable job."

"Where do they work?"

"On the mountain."

"On the mountain?"

“Yes,” the foremen said. “They blocked all the paths up the mountain and even sent people to guard them, so they wouldn’t let us go up to find out what was going on. We couldn’t just force our way in, we couldn’t exactly fight, could we? So we don’t know what’s going on.”

The local gentry were increasingly puzzled.

There isn't even a piece of flat land suitable for cultivation on this mountain, and I've never heard of any mineral treasures. To put it bluntly, even if there were ancient tombs on the mountain, they would have been opened up long ago. What decent job could one find on the mountain?

Among the local gentry, someone immediately thought of the recent appearance of a deity in the neighboring Wang Village, who claimed to be all-powerful and capable of anything, and was currently recruiting followers. They immediately said:

"Could it be that some quack from Wangzhuang next door has come here to swindle the villagers?"

Upon hearing this, a gloomy look immediately appeared on everyone's faces.

It's no wonder they're so resistant; although Zhao Village and Wang Village are neighbors, their relationship isn't good. They often clash over issues related to resources, such as land and water. There aren't any major conflicts, but minor frictions are constant.

So whenever this matter is mentioned, they worry that it might be a conspiracy by Wangzhuang to bring down Zhaozhuang in this way.

The so-called gods were, of course, fabricated and used to deceive and fool the villagers.

"No! Absolutely not!"

"We have to go and see what's going on!"

As we all know, whenever a group of people get together, there will always be a brilliant ideateller.

"So, the road up the mountain is blocked, but my family's old mine has always been guarded by my people. Although it's abandoned, it leads straight to the top of the mountain. Let's go up from there and find out what's going on."

"Great." His idea was immediately approved by everyone.

After the plan was finalized, someone said indignantly, "This means we've lost almost a quarter of our workforce. This is digging up our very foundation! We'd better not have anything to do with the people from Wangzhuang, otherwise..."

Someone immediately chimed in: "Otherwise, we should definitely take some people to demand an explanation. They're bullying our fellow villagers; they're asking for it!"

They were all angry that their fellow villagers had been deceived, but it wasn't just because their own people had been bullied and their sense of collective honor had been damaged. More importantly, without these people, where would they get their money and food?

Who will supplement the nutrients that are lacking?

Seeing this, Idea King quickly waved his hand to reassure everyone: "Don't worry, we don't know what's going on yet. Let's go and see first."

So the local gentry each brought some servants, and dozens of them sneaked out of the Wang family's mine and wound their way up the mountain. In less than half an hour, they emerged from the exit halfway up the mountain.

This exit was sealed off years ago and can only be opened from the inside. Because it has not been used or opened for many years, it has long been covered with moss and vines, making it very well hidden. Therefore, Idea King was certain that they would not attract anyone's attention if they came out from here.

To everyone's surprise, as soon as they came out of the exit, they found a tall and imposing man standing in front of them.

He was leading an old ox and sitting on a large rock, seemingly having been waiting there for quite some time.

Upon seeing the group of local gentry, he smiled slightly: "My benefactor was right after all; you have indeed found another way up the mountain."

"You are..."

The local gentry tried to recall the man carefully, but they still couldn't remember who he was.

But judging from his appearance, he clearly knew everyone.

Just as they were wondering, the man said, "Don't you recognize me? I'm Zhao Ergou."

"Two dogs?"

Everyone was taken aback at first, then exclaimed in shock: "You're Er Gou, the cowherd?!"

Seeing this, Er Gou laughed heartily with satisfaction.

He was the first person Jiang Shu met in Zhao Village, a skinny, short cowherd.

In just a few days, he replenished the nutrients he had lacked over the years. In addition, Jiang Shu wanted to show off his divine power in front of others and use him as a role model to establish his own prestige and credibility. He simply added some of the divine power he had gained in the past few days, making him tall and strong. That's why the gentry did not recognize him at first.

Everyone was incredulous, unable to reconcile the person before them with the Er Gou who would have been blown away by a gust of wind: "How could you...?"

"This is all thanks to our benefactor."

"Who exactly is this benefactor you're talking about?"

“You will see him soon.” Er Gou led the old ox and said, “He is the one my benefactor asked me to wait here. Come with me.”

After saying that, he walked up the mountain on his own.

The local gentry couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

Especially that idea king, he was convinced that only he knew about this passage, and he couldn't understand how his so-called benefactor could have known in the future and made Er Gou wait here.

Even if there was an inside agent, they had only just finalized the plan, so the agent wouldn't have had time to relay the message.

And that Er Gou, the change is so drastic, it's impossible for an ordinary person to do it.

"Could it be... that the immortals are real, that the immortals of Wangzhuang have come to our territory?"

With this question in mind, the group followed Er Gou uneasily to a huge manor.

The manor is almost half the size of Zhao Village. It is built in a crevice in the rock, with the space carved out entirely from the rock wall. It is also very new, clearly having been built not long ago.

This made them even more puzzled.

Building such a structure could not have been accomplished overnight, and the project was extremely difficult. Not to mention whether any craftsmen could do it, the sheer scale of the project meant that they couldn't possibly have been completely unaware of it while they were at the foot of the mountain.

These impossibilities made them increasingly believe that there might really be gods in this world.

Inside the manor, they finally saw many familiar faces.

These are all villagers who used to work for them or rented their land.

But when they saw them, they ignored them completely, showing no respect whatsoever. Instead, they simply went about their business busily, moving about the manor without anyone knowing what they were doing.

Just as they were at a loss, a handsome young man strolled out of the manor.

This person was Jiang Shu.

"You've arrived."

He had been waiting for these people to come to him for a long time.

Similar to the itchy head, his goal was naturally to conquer the entire Zhao Village, and he gradually eroded it by exploiting people's curiosity.

However, the two took different approaches.

The "itchy head" approach is top-down, with first believers influencing later believers, while Jiang Shu's approach is to target lower-tier markets, cutting off the source of income, and having tenants surround the landlords.

"You are..."

The local gentry, unsure of Jiang Shu's background, dared not act rashly.

Jiang Shu, however, did not hide anything and went straight to the point: "I am the mountain god of this place. I came down from the mountain because I could not bear to see the people in my jurisdiction suffering. Please do not worry. All my actions are for the benefit of this area. I have no ill intentions."

Upon hearing this, the local gentry all blushed.

They knew all too well where the people's suffering came from.

However, they did not readily believe Jiang Shu's words.

Although I've always heard from the elders that there are mountain gods in the mountains, I've never actually seen one. So when someone suddenly appears claiming to be a mountain god, it's bound to arouse suspicion.

So, Idea King tentatively asked, "Are you the mountain god who's been very active in Wangzhuang lately?"

“It wasn’t me.” Jiang Shu waved his hand. “In fact, it was an evil god.”

"Evil God?"

"Come with me."

Jiang Shu didn't offer any further explanation, but simply turned and walked towards the interior of the manor.

The group looked at each other, then mustered their courage and followed.

A moment later, the group entered the most central hall of the manor.

In the hall, many people were bent over tables making various light industrial products, including spinning, weaving, leather making, ceramics, and so on.

Beside them, there were many men patrolling constantly, carrying red-hot iron rods.

A slogan carved on a wooden board stood out conspicuously—

"You can pretend to work hard, but a fire poker won't play along."

So those who are striking are being forced to work here illegally?

"Is this what they call a decent job?"

Idea King looked at Jiang Shu in horror:

"Is this what you mean by bringing benefits to the community?"

Where is the dignity? Where is the benefit?

Before Jiang Shu could speak, someone noticed something was wrong and pulled Dianzi Wang aside.

"Wait, these are all unfamiliar faces. They're not from Zhao Village. Those on patrol are the ones."

"what?"

At this moment, Jiang Shu slowly explained.

"They are from Wangzhuang."